What’s Your Favorite Positive Affirmation?

Do you have a favorite positive affirmation? I love them; writing them out, repeating them slowly aloud, feeling the words as if they are a reality now. Using a positive affirmation is a great way to set intentions for what you want in life.

I was thinking about this the other day and I decided to try to compose a positive affirmation which would encompass for me a positive, optimistic outlook on life and a healthy way to live it.

I wrote the first draft while still lying in bed. I improved it as I made breakfast. I thought about it as I drove to town, went to the post office and the bank and shopped for groceries. I tweaked it on the drive back home. This is the result:

I lovingly release the past,
I gratefully embrace the present,
and I joyfully anticipate the future.

Have you used positive affirmations with success in your life? What’s your favorite positive affirmation and why?

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About The Author

LoriI love figuring it all out and finding I was wrong, changing my mind, learning that I can get excited again about something I thought I was moving away from; changing life-long habits. Mostly I love my husband and my children; watching us all grow through the changes of life, family reunions and celebrations with a good bottle of port and a shrimp ring.

Great question, Lori. I'm certainly not a prolific quoter of the Bible, but I especially like "May it be done to me according to your word." (Luke 1:38). It's what Mary says when the angel appears to tell her she will be Jesus' mother. It used to strike me as a very passive thing to say, but I've come to appreciate what an extraordinary statement it is. It's simultaneously an unprecedented act of letting go and also an ambitious pledge to work hard on cultivating the receptivity and mindfulness needed to live in that fashion. I usually want things done according to my word, but, if I'm honest, most of the good things in my life, were done for me and not by me.

Yes writing positive things and then reading them over really makes a lot of difference to the way we think. Though I do not write, I watch inspirational videos, read books by people who became successful after hard journeys. That gives inspiration in those times where we feel down and troubled. It may be any method that works for us but the most important thing is to think positive, learn and then move on :).

What a compelling post @Lori ...I'm not sure that I ever thought about whether or not I have a positive affirmation that I tell myself. I guess the closest thing that I can come to is what I have learned to tell myself to calm myself when I feel like I am overwhelmed and out of control...I have learned that, for me, the root of all of my "issues" is fear and if I just stop and remind myself that I am just scaring myself, I am better able to take a deep breath and see things clearly again...so maybe, for me, my affirmation is about recognizing my fears and reassuring myself that things will be okay...not letting myself scare myself ;-) I REALLY love YOUR affirmation that you put together. I could see it as a poster...it really speaks to me!

Although I haven't used it in a long time, the affirmation that jumped into my mind was one that at one time in my life was pivotal. I spent so much of my life being hypervigilant because I thought that if I let my guard down, something terrible would happen. My therapist suggested that when I felt the fear begin to take over, I simply tell myself "I am safe." I did that, and over time, I believed it and the world became a friendly place.

I realized I didn't tell you one for myself. I don't really have a specific one that I say or relate to...there are many. Some days it comes from the Four Agreements...NOTHING anyone else does is because of me {not such a positive one}...or I try to remember ALL that I AM blessed with. Try to concentrate on WHAT I have and not what I do not have!

Thanks Lori. This is great. I try and always look at the bright side. Get up every day and first thing is to be thankful. Practice gratitude. Have an "Attitude of Gratitude" Smile. What a difference a simple Smile can make. For awhile now I have focused on staying "Faithful and Grateful". It works. All these positive affirmations take practice, it is a change in mindset. For 2012, my mantra is to "Inspire and Influence Positve Change". The change begins with me and so does the attitude. Today. I choose to be positive and share that message with others.

Thanks again for this wonderful post on a Monday morning. Reminds me of Kaarina's post; what a great Opportunity to be Optimistic. Take CARE.

I like affirmations in theory, but have become cautious with them because they do tend to trigger the lizard brain and once that gets going it's more challenging to feel positive! I've learned one way around that is to remove the "I" from the statement so that I still experience the positivity without the trigger.

I also use mantras more now, ie: All is well. I recently read one by Thich Nhat Hanh which I've been saying to myself as I fall asleep...

May you be free from discomfort. May you be at ease. May you be healthy.

At first when I read this, I thought my answer was that I didn't have a positive affirmation.

Then it dawned on me that I do, after all. I had not tended to think of it as an affirmation because I think of it as a blessed truth I take with me in both good and bad situations.

It is from Romans 8:28 in the New International Version and goes like this -- And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

What if I said that when I look in the mirror I say 'hot damn, you are one cool cat'. Ok, that's a little self-centered, huh; but isn't it ok if I think I'm special? My positive affirmation is 'quit your damn whining'. My grandmother lived to be 102 w/ broken hips, knees, arthritis, etc and really didn't complain much; she's my model of just take care of your business and everything else will take care of itself.

Be thankful for what you have and, including relationships and it will keep you in a better frame of mind.

@SocialMediaDDS Hi Claudia! Thanks. That one just sort of came to me, albeit in need of editing ;-) Do you think putting your intention into words strengthens it? I do. I love the one @galenpearl shared - "I am safe". It seems to deal with all kinds of fear. Louise Hay, Queen of affirmations, often says, "All is well." In fact, as I read through the ones shared so far I see so many are about confidence/fear. Funny how we need to remind ourselves of such things when they are ultimately, so much of the time, true.

@galenpearl That's wonderful Galen! so true that we can relax when we know the world IS a friendly place and that we are safe in it! After using it for a long time you don't need it any longer? Did it just become a part of your belief system?

@Al Smith These are great ideas which you stand behind Al, gratitude, smiling. Like @SandiAmorim you are talking about a mantra. Is mantra the updated word for affirmations? LOL Yours is a powerful one. I can feel the energy of it. :-)

@Sandi Amorim Hi Sandi! I think I see what you mean. In my affirmation I would say "lovingly release the past, gratefully embrace the present, joyfully anticipate the future." It has a different feeling to it this way.

We seem to be talking about mantras now! Maybe there is little difference between positive affirmations and mantras? What ideas do we live by, that's the question. Your mantra by Thich Nhat Hanh is very peaceful.

@Yvonne Root Hi Yvonne! There's no positive affirmation like those found in the bible! That's a great one! The fact that you see it as a "blessed truth" makes it all the more powerful in influencing your life. Do you write it out and place it somewhere where it can remind you in the bad times too?

@bdorman264 No, really! I love that affirmation Bill! I think I'm going to write it on my mirror! Imagine waking up each day and reminding yourself of that!

Okay, I was talking about the "hot damn" affirmation, but the "quit whining" one is equally powerful. What happened to that we-lived-through-wars-and-poverty mindset? We're sorely lacking in our prosperity. She was grateful for what she had and didn't focus on what was wrong. We can do that too. I think.

@Lori@galenpearl It IS interesting that affirmations really affirm our safety...but, if you think about it, I guess that makes sense...I guess we wouldn't need a whole lot of affirmation if we were feeling a strong sense of well being...if we are already self affirmed!! Interesting!

@Lori I think a mantra is more inclusive or Universal, less individual which is probably why it doesn't trigger my internal chatter. If I used @bdorman264 's comment "Hot damn you are one cool cat" but I look in the mirror and see tired and frumpy my pal the lizard brain is going to have a field day with comments like "Yeah right! Who are you kidding?" and so on!

On the other hand, maybe I'll try it today. I've never called myself a cool cat before :)

@Hajra @bdorman264 We talked before about using mirror markers/crayons to post positive messages and mirrors are a great place to fend off an attack of negativity. Especially if your hair needs a lot of work to look that good! That first look in the bathroom mirror can totally set the mood for the day! LOL

@Sandi Amorim@Lori That's what I see too but I figure if I keep telling myself I will start to believe it........I could have used some other descriptions of endearment but then you might have thought I was really stuck on myself.........and I'm really not, but I do like me; I'm a pretty good friend to have.........:)

@Sandi Amorim@bdorman264 Neither have I called myself a cool cat before Sandi. But who knows, even if it only gets us laughing that early in the day, it has value. If it doesn't work, we'll just blame Bill. :o